Can you over cook pasta?

12 responses so far ↓

• 1 deshane2530 // Nov 10, 2008

  Yes
  Go by the time on the directions. I think it takes 8 minutes to boil

• 2 Mia // Nov 10, 2008

  yes u can. check cook time on box and check pasta about 1-2 minutes before that time is up. if it’s not done, just keep checking it

• 3 kate // Nov 10, 2008

  Depends on the size of the pasta, it cooks 10-12 min.

  Put your pasta in hot salty water with 1 teaspoon of oil.

  Oil helps pasta not to get overcook. Taste it to make sure it is done, than rinse it in cold water. That helps pasta not to stick together.
  Put pasta in the dish, and add 1 tablespoon of olive oil and stir with some salt, garlic and Parmesan cheese!
  Enjoy!!! It will be delicious!!!

• 4 ticoon73 // Nov 10, 2008

  God yes!!

  Bring your water to a boil, plunge your pasta and time 5 to 8 minutes depending on the type of spaghetti you use (from vermicelli to spaghetti, it's about the range). Check it as of 4 minutes, there's 2 ways to check, you throw it on the wall or cabinet door and if it sticks, it's ready OR chew it and if it sticks in your teeth, try it in another minute

• 5 Meghan // Nov 10, 2008

  yes! the only sure way to get it perfectly al dente is to taste it every 2 minutes…it can take anywhere from 6-12 minutes depending on the type of pasta you are trying to cook. if the box has a cook time on it, taste it 2 minutes before the time on the box to make sure you don’t overcook. if you’re making a pasta that you cannot test before it is done (ravioli or tortellini), they should be done when all of them have been floating for about a minute.

• 6 ShannonOfDoom // Nov 10, 2008

  You can overcook pasta Very easily in fact.

  You should cook it to what the italians call Al Dente which basically means it’s still a little firm when you bite into it.

  Cook it in a very large stock pot filled with water & a big pinch of salt & a dash of olive oil. Make sure the water is boiling before you add the pasta!

  I cant tell you how long it will take to cook because it depends on the pasta, how much there is & how much water you’re boiling it in. You just need to keep checking until it tastes right! i would defiantly say no more than 12 minutes & try to cook it in small batches (no more than enough for 4 people)

• 7 Virginia M // Nov 10, 2008

  Boil your noodles on a medium flame and add a tsp. oil. Check the noodles by bringing one to the side of the pan and checking if it will cut easily with a fork. When rinsing noodles, don’t over do it! I’ve never had soggy noodles.

• 8 Julia S // Nov 10, 2008

  You’re probably overcooking it and/or not draining it well enough.

  1. Bring a bit pot of water to boil over high heat. Add a pinch of salt and a few drops of oil if you want to. Put a colander in the sink for later.

  2. Once the water is at a full rolling boil, add the pasta all at once. If it’s spaghetti and is sticking out, you can give it a little poke so it’s submerged once the underwater parts start to soften.

  3. Set a timer for the lower amount of time on the package. Make your salad, heat your sauce, test the wine to make sure it’s okay, whatever.

  4. Ding! Use a fork to fish out one piece of spaghetti. Watch out for steam! (Poaching your hand is so not pleasant.) Drop it on the stovetop to cool or just blow on it. You have two options to test: the refrigerator method or the guinea pig method.

  The refrigerator method: Chuck the piece of spaghetti against the refrigerator. If it sticks, the pasta is probably done, or close. If it falls off within a couple of seconds, let it cook longer. (Note: do not put the test piece back in the pot.

  The guinea pig method: Take a bite. Take a look at the “core” of the pasta. If you can see a dry center, the pasta isn’t cooked yet.

  Continue to test every minute or two using one of the above methods.

  5. It’s done! What do I do? EEEEK!

  Calm down. You already have a colander in the sink, right? Dump all of the water and pasta into the colander. Shake it around a bit to make sure it’s drained. Dribble some oil into the now-empty pot if you want. Return the pasta to the pot and shake it around to distribute the oil. (Butter’s okay too… this whole part is optional, it’s just to add flavor and prevent sticking.)

  6. Serve it up. Yummy yummy. Don’t completely cover the pot with leftovers in it or you might wind up with some sogginess from the water cycle.

• 9 Shy Girl 2008 // Nov 10, 2008

  Read the package, it should say how long and just test it so you know.

• 10 Brian X // Nov 10, 2008

  Start with the directions on the box and subtract a minute, checking frequently after that point for doneness (every thirty seconds or so). I actually don’t pay much attention to the cooking time and just sample every minute or so to see if it’s reached the right degree of doneness.

• 11 Youre all the same. // Nov 10, 2008

  Yes. Sogginess is a sign of over cooking.
  Follow the time the instructions say +2 Minutes!
  It’ll be PERFECT!

• 12 janet a // Nov 10, 2008

  Keep checking it — if the directions say 10 minutes, start checking it at 7 minutes. Use a really big pot and lots of water so that the spaghetti is not crowded in the pot. Get the water to a full boil, add salt, then add spaghetti. Keep stirring the spaghetti until it is soft enough to be completely submerged in the water. Then stir it often — I usually just stand right there and stir it at least every 1 minute. Then taste it when you think it may be done. After a while, you’ll be able to tell if it is done just by picking up a piece and letting it hang over the spoon. Good luck.

  By the way, don’t add oil to the pan of water or put oil on the spaghetti when done — it just keeps the sauce from sticking to the spaghetti — you want that bit of starch to stay on the spaghetti. Likewise, don’t rinse the spaghetti in cold water — you’ll lose the starch.